A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The Church honors today the memory of St. Boniface (680-754), a Benedictine monk born in England and consecrated the first bishop of Mainz, Germany after only four years of preaching there. He organized the Church in this area and founded the abbey of Fulda. Along with thirty companions, Boniface was martyred at Dokkum in Frisia. He is known as the Apostle to Germany.
Like other missionary martyrs of his time, St. Boniface gave his life not only for Jesus and his Gospel but also for the people to whom he was sent to preach the Good News. In the First Reading, we see Paul, full of courage, boldly presenting his case before King Agrippa. In his presentation, St. Paul was not pleading his case. Although aware that his life was on the line, he took the opportunity to witness to the Messiahship of Jesus Christ. He was not cowed by the charges that the Jews had brought against him. If anything, we might say that Paul was happy to put his life on the line for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Like St. Paul, St. Boniface might not have been cowed by threats or mistreatment from those who were opposed to his ministry of preaching the Good News to the people of Frisia. Whereas he might have known where his preaching of the Good News would lead him, he never stopped. Like Jesus his Master, he became the good shepherd who readily gave his life for his flock. May we who are celebrating his life today be filled with the same zeal for the spreading of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.